Best of Bootstrapping: Bootstrapped a 2-Sided Marketplace to $10M

If you haven’t already, please study our free Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page.  CEO Sal Akbani had bootstrapped Gateway Classic Cars to over $10 million in revenue when we spoke in 2017. This is a great story of how a two-sided marketplace was masterfully seeded and scaled in a niche market. Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the very

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Best of Bootstrapping: Bootstrapping a 2-Sided Marketplace to $10M

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page.  CEO Sal Akbani had bootstrapped Gateway Classic Cars to over $10 million in revenue when we spoke in 2017. This is a great story of how a two-sided marketplace was masterfully seeded and scaled in a niche market. Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the very beginning

Read Full Article »

Best of Bootstrapping: Bootstrapping a Two-Sided Marketplace to $10M

CEO Sal Akbani has bootstrapped Gateway Classic Cars to over $10 million in revenue. This is a great story of how a two-sided marketplace was masterfully seeded and scaled in a niche market. Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the very beginning of your journey. Where are you from? Where were you born, raised, and in

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Bootstrapping a Two-Sided Marketplace to $10M: Sal Akbani, CEO of Gateway Classic Cars (Part 7)

Sramana Mitra: Where to from here? More of the same? Sal Akbani: More of the same. We’re also incorporating a few other items out there into the product mix. As part of one of our themes, we have partnered with a very famous NASCAR personality Kenny Wallace. We are producing a mini-series on TV and

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Bootstrapping a Two-Sided Marketplace to $10M: Sal Akbani, CEO of Gateway Classic Cars (Part 6)

Sramana Mitra: Why Kentucky? Sal Akbani: Because it was closer and safer, and I only had so much money to spare. Sramana Mitra: How did that pan out? Sal Akbani: Really well. It’s one of our best-performing showrooms for the last four years.

Bootstrapping a Two-Sided Marketplace to $10M: Sal Akbani, CEO of Gateway Classic Cars (Part 5)

Sramana Mitra: Would you say, looking back, that was not the right market to go into? Sal Akbani: It was actually a good market. We just didn’t know what the heck we were doing. Sramana Mitra: What do you think, looking back, did you not do or were not doing right? Sal Akbani: Managing. We

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Bootstrapping a Two-Sided Marketplace to $10M: Sal Akbani, CEO of Gateway Classic Cars (Part 4)

Sramana Mitra: We’re now at the end of 2000. You’ve got this model that is validating. You’re starting to make a little bit of money with which you can pay yourself. What are the next key strategic moves and what were the next key inflection points in the business? Sal Akbani: The next strategic move

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Bootstrapping a Two-Sided Marketplace to $10M: Sal Akbani, CEO of Gateway Classic Cars (Part 3)

Sramana Mitra: Your site operates as a two-sided marketplace except you store the inventory. Sal Akbani: Yes, and we have currently 14 plus 1. Sramana Mitra: What does that mean? Sal Akbani: We have 14 active ones [warehouses] and we have one more coming up in Denver on June. We’re currently also working in Scottsdale

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